VW Says 11 Million Vehicles Have The “Defeat Device”, Will Spend €6.5 Billion To Fix Them

Volkswagen’s internal investigations have revealed that the engine management software blamed for cheating emissions tests in the US is also installed in other vehicles with diesel engines built by the group.

However, the automaker says that “for the majority of these engines the software does not have any effect.” The big issue is that vehicles with Type EA 189 engines, which have been proved to cheat emissions tests in the United States, are about 11 million worldwide!

“A noticeable deviation between bench test results and actual road use was established solely for this type of engine. Volkswagen is working intensely to eliminate these deviations through technical measures,” the automaker said in a statement.

While VW did not say what measures will be taken to fix the affected vehicles, it announced that it will set aside some €6.5 billion ($7.25 billion) “to cover the necessary service measures and other efforts to win back the trust of our customers.” The sum will be mentioned in the profit and loss statement in the third quarter of the current fiscal year.

Still, since investigations are ongoing, the amounts estimated may be subject to revaluation. VW added that it is in contact with the relevant authorities and the German Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA – Kraftfahrtbundesamt).

As for new vehicles from the VW Group with EU 6 diesel engines currently available in the European Union, the automaker said they “comply with legal requirements and environmental standards” and “the software in question does not affect handling, consumption or emissions.”